The sun. [volume] (Morris, Stevens County, Minn.) 1882-1895, 1887-10-27
mss BtACXTHWAlTES DIAMONDS

Mss BLACKTHWAlfE'S DIAMONDS.
Long ago. in tho good old time
which people sigh Tor. folk were hung
!or stealing. Proved guilty. after >
careless fashion. which would bring
Judge Lynch to his feet for the benefit
Of tho court were it practised now.
they were strung up without mercy.
and not half the fuss was made about
the execution of q woman who had
stolen q loaf Of bread that would be
made now over the execution Of q
wholesale poisoner or the midnight
assassin of women and children. No
qualms of conscience were felt and all
believed that. capital punishment done
away with. no ones property would be
safe an hour.
Consequently when Miss Black
lhwaite lost her diamonds the fact that
any one might be suspected was very
nervous thought to her household.
Of course Major Blackthwaite, her
brother. and her friend, Miss Whit
more. who was on a visit at the house.
were out of the question, but there
were the servants. one, at least. quite
new to the establishment, and oddly
enough, every one of them had. TO the
knowledge of every one else, been in
the room where the diamonds were
left between the moment when she had
known them to be safe and the one
when she had missed them.
Miss Blackthwaite had come home,
from the country ball woefully tired.
quite worn out. for she was delicate
little creature, who could not bear as
much dancing as some women can, and
had undressed herself in a hurry and
just wrapped herself in her white night
gown. when the wind. which was high
that night, sent a sharp blast through
a window-frame not over-tightly set,
and fiirted the curtain with the candle
The consequence was conf1agration
on small scale. Miss Blackthwaite
rushed out screaming. Her brother
and the servants rushed in. Buckets
of water we're thrown on the flame s
and noise enough made to shame a
New York fire company of the olden
. time. Finally the fire was extinguish-
ed. and the lady returned to her pillow.
In the morning her diamonds were
gone.
She remembered having put them in
certain box upon her dressing table.
intending to close and lock it before
ret ring. She had not done so, for in
her terror she had forgotten all about
the jewels, and they had either been
lost or stolen.
1t was 10 o'clock when she awoke.
and her window was wide open. But
it was too far from the ground for any
one to have obta ned entrance in that
way. And at first Major Blackthwaite.
who would not suspect his servants Of
dishonesty, declared that Ruth must
have had them in her hand and put
them down somewhere, or that they
had been thrown upon the floor by &C.
cident. Therefore, search was made
in the room itself, in all the halls. in
the majors room, to which his sister
had first flown for aid, in Miss Whit
more's. and, in fact everywhere where
there was any possibility of their hav.
ing concealed themselves in that ODD
fashion which would almost convince
one that 'inanimate Objects could en-
joy the anxiety and tribulations Of
their possessors and maliciously play
at hide-and seek.
But in this case. the missing objects
were not found concealed in any cracl
or crevice. or under any rug or behind
any heavy article of furniture. or ir
pocket or lining. or shoe. In fact. af'
ter careful search of three morta
days, it was determined that they wer.
stolen. And. if stolen, that one Of tn.
servants must be the culprit. There
fore, Major Blackthwaite walked into
the kitchen with very solemn counte
nance and called the servants abou
him.
Good people," he said, "Mis
Blackthwaite has lost her diamonds
You all know we have made a fai
search, and they are not to be found
They must be stolen. and though hat
to suspect my servants. and am as kim
master rs you know, l think. wha
am to do? You must all be searched
every one of you'll make no excep
tons. shall send for constable an,
have the matter Investigated. hope
it will prove your honesty; I sincerely
hope it, friends
There was dead silence when tn
major had done speaking. and face
grew dark and angry, and teeth wer
set, and eyes were turned suspiciousl
upon each other, and when the majo
had left the kitchen the wrath broke int
a storm of spluttering Welsh.
Indignation reigned supreme.
Got! does hur think us thieves?'
yelled Old JOhn-ap- John, the coach
man. Search us-what does hu
meanr'
And the cook joined in. and the but
lcr; and the housemaid wept, and tn
little knife boy blubbered. Only Pete
Morgan sat without demonstration
beside the fire. Peter Morgan. a strar
ger. who had come to help about tn
stables within the past three weeks.
''The master has right to scare
us, if he likes" he said, ''and we ar
all in the same box, none worse hui
than the other. If we're honest VIII
what harm can come of it ?"
And at that old John-ap.John brok
ont furiously:
'.Hur must be thief, If hur don
mind the name of one" he YELLED
ct novar vas off to .rOhn-a n-.Iohn IN